Hokage Climbing
by Nate Grey
Summary: When Konohamaru's demons catch up to him, only Hanabi can comfort him. Not that she particularly wants to, mind you, and certainly not when she could be home in bed. Companion to Hyuuga Secret Arts.


Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto, I'm not getting paid, the only character that belongs to me is Nara Kouji. Although I might let you borrow him, if you ask first.

Notes: I couldn't just do a story about one of Hanabi's teammates. With this one, I wanted to focus more on how Konohamaru is slowly becoming the man you'll see later in Hyuuga Secret Arts.

Summary: When Konohamaru's demons catch up to him, only Hanabi can comfort him.

**Hokage Climbing**

**(Companion to "Hyuuga Secret Arts")**

**A Naruto Ficlet by**

**Nate Grey (XMAN0123-at-aol-dot-com)**

Hanabi had never been a very deep sleeper. She was always afraid that she'd miss something important, simply because someone had been afraid to disturb her. To avoid such instances, she trained her senses to be at their sharpest while she was resting. Anyone who knew her well enough would never bother to attempt shaking her awake, as it was impossible, anyway. More than likely, she'd already be staring at them before they could lay a hand on her.

So when Neji entered her room late one night, he ignored the bed entirely and began to gather up her kunai pouch. By the time he turned around, Hanabi was already sitting up and reaching for it.

"Konohamaru has gone missing," Neji said quietly. "Kouji is waiting outside."

Hanabi only needed to think for a moment. "I know where he is. There is no cause for concern. I will return when I have secured him." She glanced down at herself, noting with some satisfaction that the habit of sleeping in her usual training attire had again come in handy. As an afterthought, she grabbed a pair of thick gloves.

He blinked at that, but nodded. "And if they come looking for him here before you get back?" he asked.

"Tell them he hasn't gone far, and that he'll be home soon enough," she replied, heading for the door.

* * *

Hanabi had climbed to the top of the Hokage Monument many times since becoming Konohamaru's friend and team leader. He had an annoying habit of scaling the mountain no less than twice a month, and so Ebisu occasionally made it part of their training regimen. It was admittedly very good exercise, but Hanabi hated having to go through it solely to hear yet another lecture on how great the past Hokages had been (and how her team would desperately need Ebisu's help to even begin to approach that level of skill). She took some pride, however, in knowing that they were the only genin team even allowed to attempt the climb without supervision.

They had always climbed either in the morning or early afternoon, and by now each member of her team knew their path up the mountain well enough to complete it blindfolded. It had never occurred to her that they might have to do so at night, but there was not so great a difference, she realized now. The handholds were still there, if one knew where to look as they did. The great faces of the past Hokages still gazed at them impassively.

Hanabi's chosen path lay between the faces of the Sandaime and the Yondaime (shortest in height, but also the only one with a staircase to jog up afterwards). She remembered that Konohamaru had wanted that particular path, but she'd refused to let him have it until he could beat her best time up the mountain. To this day, his assigned path remained next to hers, between the faces of the Nidaime and the Sandaime, while Kouji's was between the Shodai and the Nidaime. She had never understood why Konohamaru wanted her path so badly. He was scaling the mountain next to the face of his grandfather either way, so what did it matter which side he was on?

But as Hanabi reached the stone Yondaime's eye level this night, she thought she finally understood how Konohamaru felt. In the dark of night, lit solely by the pale moonlight, the Yondaime's face put her in mind of another person Konohamaru was close to. It was a silly thought, but her teammate was no stranger to those, so she put it aside for the moment.

When she finally scrambled on top of the Yondaime's head, ran up the zigzagging staircase, and onto the viewing platform just behind the head of the Sandaime, someone sitting there in plain view, as if waiting for her. She almost assumed it was Kouji, but quickly stowed the look of outrage as she spotted his bandaged head popping up at the edge of the platform behind the Nidaime's head. Her time was safe, then.

Hanabi turned back, and was not at all surprised when she recognized the outlandish orange jumpsuit with black trim, or the piercing blue eyes that held her in their gaze for a moment before sliding away.

She did not need the moonlight to make the connection with the image she'd seen moments before.

"He's over there," Uzumaki Naruto said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder, "but you knew that, or you wouldn't be here. I tried to talk him down, but he wouldn't budge. A nightmare spooked him. He wouldn't say what it was about, but..." He paused, glanced over his shoulder, and then made an odd noise in his throat that was an almost perfect pantomime of a snake hissing.

She didn't need clarification. Konohamaru had only ever had two serious nightmares: no one remembering his name...

And Orochimaru.

She had tried to convince him that his particular nightmare was completely untrue. Yes, Orochimaru had impaled the Sandaime with a sword, but it was that, and a number of other factors, that ultimately resulted in the Hokage's death. Unfortunately, Konohamaru continued to dwell on that one factor, and in his mind, Orochimaru had murdered his grandfather. And while Hanabi could agree with that to some extent, she knew it wasn't entirely accurate. But that was the problem with nightmares: they didn't have to be accurate to be effective.

"Thank you for watching over him, Naruto-san," Hanabi said quietly, making a slight bow.

He grunted uncomfortably and looked away, clearly not used to being addressed with even such a common level respect.

Hanabi moved past Naruto, and sure enough, she could see Konohamaru sitting near the edge of the platform above his grandfather's stone head. Her teammate's back tensed up as she got closer, though she wasn't sure why until she sat down next to him. He tried to hastily rub them away with his forearm, but Hanabi could see the tear tracks easily enough.

"Oh... Hanabi-chan," he said after a few seconds, trying to sound surprised. "They woke you up because of me? I'm sorry... I'm always causing you trouble, aren't I?"

"As I have said many times before," Hanabi sighed, "you are a pain, Konohamaru. But you are my pain, so I accept that."

He made a sound that was an odd cross between a final sob and a laugh, but when she looked at him, he was smiling proudly, as if she'd just paid him a huge compliment.

And maybe she had.

"How long are you going to stay up here?" she asked bluntly. "I would like to get some sleep tonight."

"Oh, you don't have to stay up here with-" Konohamaru stopped talking as he noticed the blank expression on her face. "Um... we can go in a few minutes," he muttered, blushing slightly. "It's just... I can't go home. Not tonight."

"Then we will go somewhere else," Hanabi replied simply.

"Really?" He seemed startled by the suggestion, but also very pleased. "Thank you, Hanabi-chan!"

"If you really want to thank me, next time run away to somewhere that is at ground level."

"But how would you know where to look?"

"It wouldn't matter," she answered confidently. "I would still find you."

He stared at her in wonder. "You would, wouldn't you?"

To that, Hanabi gave no answer. She assumed the question was rhetorical, anyway. If Konohamaru hadn't figured out by now that she would always come for him (or Kouji, for that matter), then she wasn't going to tell him. It would just be a waste of breath, and she was going to need it all for the long trip back down the mountain.

"I'm ready now," Konohamaru said quietly as he stood up.

She looked up at him, and noticed for the first time that he seemed a bit more mature. He'd been growing his hair longer, and the scraggly black locks suited his face, for now. The moment they ceased to, she would make an offhand comment about not being impressed by boys with messy hair, and that would be the end of it.

They crossed the platform in silence, at least until they reached the spot where Kouji and Naruto were sitting, playing a few rounds of janken to keep from being bored. Hanabi waited until Kouji won the next round before clearing her throat.

Kouji was instantly on his feet, but Naruto took his time rising, yawning hugely as he did so.

Konohamaru rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Sorry I got you up so late, boss..."

Naruto raised his hand, as if he were going to hit the boy, but settled on roughly tousling his hair, which only made it messier. "Yeah, yeah. Just don't do it again any time soon." He yawned again and walked off, waving to them without turning back as he went.

"You may go home now, if you wish, Kouji-kun," Hanabi decided. "I will take care of Konohamaru."

Kouji had always been a loyal friend, but the thought of losing any more sleep than he had to this night was not at all appealing. He strode forward, clapped Konohamaru fondly on the shoulder, and then quickly followed Naruto.

"Guess it's just you and me now," Konohamaru observed, sounding a little too happy for her liking.

Hanabi glanced at him, sighed, and began to walk.

* * *

"You will sleep here."

Konohamaru scanned the nearly bare room with obvious disappointment. "I was sort of hoping I could stay in your room, Hanabi-chan." After a sharp look from her, he quickly added, "On the floor, of course."

Hanabi shook her head. "You would be far more comfortable in an actual bed, and I will not give up or share my own."

"Um... but doesn't this room belong to someone? Even if they haven't been here in a while?"

She closed her eyes briefly. "It belonged to Hinata."

Konohamaru's face drained of color. "Oh... I'm sor-"

"Go to sleep, Konohamaru," Hanabi interrupted gently but firmly. "I will see you home in the morning. You will not have any nightmares here."

"How do you know?"

She gazed at his face in silence for a few seconds. "Hinata never did. Or if she did, she never had reason enough to complain aloud."

"O-Okay. Goodnight, Hanabi-chan."

"Good morning, Konohamaru," she corrected dryly, turning to leave.

"I'm sorry... if I made you worry about me," he offered hesitantly.

"I was not," she replied. "You are annoying, not stupid." It was closest thing to a compliment he would get at this hour. "But if you ever run when I have need of you, I will not forgive so easily." She closed the door behind her, and instantly debated if she should tell him not to move anything.

Then she recalled that all of Hinata's belongings had either been disposed of, or divided up among the clan. As was her right, Hanabi had been given first choice, but had only taken a few barely-used kunai. While she certainly got much more use out of them, in the back of her mind, Hanabi still considered them Hinata's, to the point where she saw them as being borrowed more than anything else.

Despite her initial feelings of discomfort, Hanabi knew that Konohamaru would be fine in Hinata's room. He was very much like Naruto, who Hinata had obviously liked a great deal. And though she didn't have much use for, or faith in spirits, Hanabi knew that Hinata's presence would always linger in that room. She felt it any time she came near the room, and Neji was the same way, since she'd seen him give the room an odd look more than once.

Thus assured that everything was more or less in its proper place, Hanabi returned to her own room. It was some time before she got to sleep, however, and even then, all she could think about was how proudly Naruto had fought in Hinata's name at the chuunin exam, and how proud Konohamaru seemed every time he donned an orange shirt with the Konoha leaf in black on the front.

* * *

As promised, Hanabi and Konohamaru set out for his home the next morning. He still seemed nervous, though she could tell it had nothing to do with the nightmare. She wasn't about to ask if he didn't wish to talk about it, though.

"I had a dream last night," he offered suddenly, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"About?"

Konohamaru took a deep breath and looked away. "We were married. To each other."

Hanabi didn't miss a step, like she thought she might have. She only murmured, "Hmm."

Apparently encouraged by her reaction, he went on. "We had three kids. All girls that looked just like you."

She considered this for a moment. "Were we happy?"

He looked startled, but finally grinned. "Very."

"I see." She said nothing else.

"So, um... that giving you any ideas?" Konohamaru asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

"I have never believed that dreams or nightmares had much basis in reality, Konohamaru. You may dream whatever you wish. I prefer to exercise my will in the real world."

"Oh." He sounded extremely disappointed.

Hanabi closed her eyes briefly. "At any rate, I have no plans to marry or bear children. At this point, I seriously doubt I will ever do either. There are... circumstances which would prevent me in both cases."

"It was just a dream," Konohamaru said faintly, staring at the ground.

She came to an abrupt stop. "Do you love me, Konohamaru?"

He spun around to face at her once. "You know I do, Hanabi-chan!" he cried.

"I know you believe you do," she corrected gently. "But if you truly love me, then you must accept me as I am. That means accepting that I may never give you children... or marry you, for that matter."

"I won't ever give up on you, Hanabi-chan," he swore. "One day, you will be my wife. And we'll be happy, even without children."

He looked so determined, that Hanabi didn't have it in her to say he was wrong. "I suppose we will have to wait and see which of us has the stronger will."

"We don't have to have kids. And if you really don't want to, I guess we don't have to be married, either." Konohamaru took a step towards her. "But I meant what I said, Hanabi-chan. I won't ever give up on you. You may not ever take my name, but I will have your love someday."

"We shall see, Konohamaru." Hanabi turned away from him. "I trust you can see yourself home the rest of the way. I have much to do today."

She had only taken a step when he seized her hand.

"I haven't properly thanked you for your kindness, Hanabi-chan." His voice sounded strange to her, as if there were something caught in his throat.

Suspecting she might regret doing so, Hanabi slowly turned around. Konohamaru's face was dangerously close to hers, and before she could ask what he thought he was doing, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss was clumsy and warm and above all, sweet. Yet it left Hanabi feeling strangely empty inside. She did not love Konohamaru, at least not in any way that would allow her to enjoy such a thing. But she understood that in his current fragile state, her ability to break his heart was even more powerful than usual.

"You shouldn't have done that," she whispered the moment he pulled away.

"Probably not," he agreed with a small smile. "But I won't ever regret it." Giving her hand a quick squeeze, Konohamaru turned and leaped up onto a nearby rooftop, bounding out of sight.

Sighing softly, Hanabi wondered yet again what she had done to get Konohamaru so fixated on her. She had known from the moment she met him that her first kiss would come from him, and had been dreading it ever since. Now, though, she felt worse that someone who felt so much for her could inspire so few feelings for her to return.

"I am sorry, Konohamaru," Hanabi murmured. "I fear this is one dream that will have to remain just that. But I will do everything in my power to help you become Hokage. It is the only way I can repay your... love."

The word sounded strange on her lips, but Hanabi knew she was capable of love, if only with her family. She could no longer delude herself into thinking that what she felt for Neji was simply strong affection. Nor did she quite believe that the pain she felt whenever she thought of Hinata was entirely due to rage.

Konohamaru was a different matter, though. He had willingly bound himself to her and Kouji, believing even then that he was meant to be with her. And his feelings had only grown stronger over time. He had never dared to do more than briefly touch her hand until today, and Hanabi was uncertain as to how she should react to such advances. She did not love him, nor did she wish to hurt him; he was still her friend, after all.

Hanabi thought about all of these things as she walked home. By the time she got there, she could only decide that her pledge to make Konohamaru's dream a reality was for the best. Perhaps, if she helped him become Hokage, he wouldn't take it so hard when his other dreams failed to come true...

**The End.**

* * *

Endnotes:

I'm using the design of the Hokage Monument as it is in the manga, though I don't know that there's much difference from the anime version. When I say "between the faces," there really isn't that much space there, so more than likely you'd have to actually climb on the edges of the faces at some point... which really just means more potential handholds, since their hair sticks out.

In case you're wondering, the factors that contributed to the Sandaime Hokage's death include (but may not be limited to): his old age, being impaled on the sword, and sealing the souls of Orochimaru's arms (the cost of which is always the life of the user, which really makes this the only factor that guaranteed death in the battle).

Janken is the Japanese version of Rock, Paper, Scissors. I think the main difference is that there's an additional round where one player tries to guess which direction the other player is going to tilt their head/look in. I've also heard there was a version that used a snake, a toad, and a slug instead…

As for why Hanabi doesn't want to get married and have kids, you'll just have to wait and see... but don't expect to find out anytime soon. I think the reason(s) might surprise you. I hope, anyway.

* * *

**Omake!**

Suspecting she might regret doing so, Hanabi slowly turned around. Konohamaru's face was dangerously close to hers, and before she could ask what he thought he was doing, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.

Konohamaru was just really starting to enjoy it when something sharp poked him in the neck. Confused, he pulled away, only to find Hanabi holding a kunai to his throat. "Hanabi-chan?" he asked fearfully.

"I thought you were attacking," she said simply, giving no indication that she would lower the weapon any time soon.

"I… I just wanted to kiss you. Is that so wrong?"

"I haven't decided yet."

He smiled nervously. "Well… you know I wasn't attacking now. So can't you…?" He carefully applied pressure to her hand, trying to move the kunai away from his throat.

It didn't budge.

"Hanabi-chan… why are you still-"

"Were you going to use your tongue?" Hanabi asked abruptly.

Konohamaru stared at her in shock. "What? I mean, no! Of course not!"

The kunai pressed deeper into his neck.

"I mean, maybe! Possibly! No, definitely!"

Hanabi slowly withdrew the kunai, deliberately brushing her fingers along his neck. "You should improve your technique. If you ever expect to be allowed to do that again, anyway. I will accept nothing but your best effort, Konohamaru."

"Whatever you say, Hanabi-chan," Konohamaru agreed, taking a respectful step back.

"You have the right attitude, at least." With a nod, she turned and headed down the street.

He stared after her for a few seconds before something occurred to him. "Wait! How am I supposed to practice?"


End file.
